Former MD of Prominent Nigerian Bank Sent to Jail over N25.7bn Fraud
- An Ikeja high court has sentenced a former MD of the defunct Bank PHB Plc, Francis Atuche, to 6 years imprisonment over N25.7bn theft
- The court also sentenced the bank's former CFO, Ugo Anyanwu, to 6 years jail term over the same crime
- Justice Lateefat Okunnu who presided over the case held that the EFCC proved its case that the money was stolen not loaned as the convicts claimed
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Ikeja, Lagos - Francis Atuche, a former managing director of the defunct Bank PHB Plc, was on Wednesday, June 16, sentenced to six years imprisonment over N25.7 billion fraud.
Justice Lateefat Okunnu of the Ikeja high court also sentenced a former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the bank, Ugo Anyanwu, to six years imprisonment, over the same crime, Premium Times reported.
Source: Facebook
Legit.ng gathers that the judge, however, discharged and acquitted Atuche’s wife Elizabeth.
In sentencing the duo, the judge held that the EFCC proved its case which reportedly dates back over 10 years beyond a reasonable doubt.
N25.7 billion stolen, not loaned
The former bank chief, his wife, and Anyanwu were accused of stealing and conspiring to steal N25.7 billion belonging to the bank.
They were arraigned in 2011 before Okunnu and pleaded not guilty.
However, reading her judgment, the judge upheld the arguments of the EFCC prosecutor that the N25.7 billion was stolen, not loaned, as argued by Atuche.
She said:
“By stealing from the bank, they stole from innocent customers of the bank. I hereby make an order of restitution against the first and third defendants to refund the sums stated in counts one to 11, 14 and 24.
“The sums are to paid to the relevant agencies that recovered the funds on behalf of the bank."
Okunnu noted that both convicts defrauded the bank using well-recognised stockbrokers to transfer money under the guise of loans and shares, The Cable also reported.
She added:
“It was a well-planned, well-executed scheme but the bubble burst when the Central Bank of Nigeria intervened."
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Civil servant caught with over N1bn in one account
Meanwhile, the EFCC chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, has said the anti-graft agency recovered over N1 billion from a civil servant last week.
The EFCC boss who disclosed this in a video sighted by Legit.ng and published by The Punch said this was just to let people know that there are leakages.
He said:
"A billion naira, sitting in an account, not properties. Cash. Just to tell you the problems that we have."
Source: Legit.ng
